On Wednesday, a group of California lawmakers introduced 14 measures based on an extensive list of recommendations by a reparations task force. This is the first attempt of its kind in the US, and it faces a steep uphill battle.
Wide range of issues
The 14 measures cover a variety of issues relating to reparations, including policing and education. However, direct financial compensation to descendants of enslaved Black people is not included.
All facets of life
“While many only associate direct cash payments with reparations,” the chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, Lori Wilson, stated, “the true meaning of the word, to repair, involves much more. We need a comprehensive approach to dismantling the legacy of slavery and systemic racism.”
Returning property
One bill would “restore property taken during race-based uses of eminent domain to its original owners or provide another effective remedy where appropriate, such as restitution or compensation.”
Hairy topic
Another proposal would protect “natural and protective” hairstyles in competitive sports. In 2022, the US House of Representatives passed the Crown Act, a measure to ban race-based discrimination on hair.
Ongoing battle
The issue is the center of an ongoing lawsuit in Texas to determine whether a Black high school student can be punished for refusing to alter his hair. The superintendent of the school argued that “being an American requires conformity.”
Saying sorry
Another of the 14 measures introduced in California is one requiring a formal apology by the governor and state Legislature “for the state’s role in human rights violations and crimes against humanity on African slaves and their descendants,” POLITICO reported.
Targeted assistance
One of the proposals would require a change to California’s Constitution. It would permit the state to allocate funding for programs “increasing the life expectancy of, improving educational outcomes for, or lifting out of poverty specific groups based on race, color, ethnicity, national origin, or marginalized genders, sexes, or sexual orientations.”
Potential problems
The plan to provide assistance to specific groups could face legal challenges. In 2023, the Supreme Court ruled that race could not be a factor used in college admissions.
State rejection
California banned affirmative action in college admissions years earlier, which led to a sharp decline in the number of minorities enrolled in the state’s public universities. In 2020, a ballot measure to restore affirmative action was rejected by state voters.
Move backwards
“With let-them-eat-cake obliviousness,” Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote after the Supreme Court’s 2023 verdict, “the majority pulls the ripcord and announces ‘colorblindness for all’ by legal fiat. But deeming race irrelevant in law does not make it so in life.”
Extensive study
Last year, a California task force released a 111-page set of recommendations based on years of study into reparations. Other states, including New York and Colorado, have commissioned their own studies, but none have tried to turn them into law — except California.
Limited popularity
The 111 pages of recommendations included one advising California to pay $1.2 million in reparations for slavery. Governor Gavin Newsom equivocated, telling the press that “dealing with that legacy is about much more than cash payments.”
Not so liberal
In mid-2023, a poll showed that only 39% of likely voters in California supported a reparations task force. “California is not as liberal as people want us to believe,” state Sen. Steven Bradford, vice chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, told POLITICO.
Read Next: What Really Causes Donald Trump’s Skin to be So Orange
Former President Donald Trump’s distinctive orange skin has captivated attention, sparking curiosity about its evolution from average pale over the years:
What Really Causes Donald Trump’s Skin to be So Orange
27 Things MAGA Movement Ruined Forever for People
How the MAGA movement left its mark on individuals and disrupted certain aspects of our everyday life forever:
27 Things MAGA Movement Ruined Forever for People
Court Finally Unseals Secretive Case of Jan 6 Offender
Samuel Lazar sentenced for Jan. 6 insurrection; previously confidential case now revealed: Court Finally Unseals Secretive Case of Jan 6 Offender
Defamation lawsuit against Kari Lake advances while people compare her to Rudy Giuliani
Kari Lake loses First Amendment right to accuse Maricopa County recorder; Arizona Republic ponders if she’s channeling Rudy Giuliani in her sleep : Defamation lawsuit against Kari Lake advances while people compare her to Rudy Giuliani
More Democrats are flipping in a crucial swing state than Republicans
In Pennsylvania, a significant number of registered Democrats flipping is sending an unflattering signal to President Biden: More Democrats are flipping in a crucial swing state than Republicans
